This invention pertains to caller identification systems, and more particularly, to a caller identification system which audibly and visually announces an incoming telephone call when the telephone number and possibly the name of the calling party are unavailable to the caller identification system.
Telephone users who subscribe to a caller identification service, commonly referred to as xe2x80x9ccaller ID service,xe2x80x9d do so because they want to know who is trying to call them on each and every incoming telephone call. Caller ID subscribers desire to know in advance who is calling them in order to make an informed decision about answering the call. They want to be able to answer calls from parties that they know if it is convenient for them to talk to the party at the present time. If it is not a convenient time, they can choose to not talk the known party. And finally, caller ID subscribers want to be able to choose whether or not to answer calls from parties that they do not know.
However, many telephone calls received by caller ID subscribers are from calling parties who have blocked their name and telephone number from being revealed to the caller ID subscriber by the caller identification system. In such cases, the caller ID subscriber""s visual display unit does not show the name or number of the calling party. This is very frustrating to the caller ID subscriber, because this defeats the very purpose for which the caller ID subscriber secured the caller ID service in the first place: to know the name and number of all parties calling them.
This situation is also frustrating to the calling party. When a calling party who has blocked their name and telephone number calls a caller ID subscriber who has turned on the blocked call rejection feature, the calling party receives a recorded message indicating that the caller ID subscriber does not accept blocked telephone calls. In such situations, if the calling party wants to speak to the caller ID subscriber, the calling party has to take certain steps to unblock his telephone number from the caller identification system. Typically, such steps may entail the calling party hanging up, picking the handset up again, entering a sequence of command symbols or numbers through their telephone keypad, and then redialing the desired party.
In view of the foregoing problems and difficulties, it is an aspect of the present invention to provide an improved caller identification system that audibly announces to a caller ID subscriber that an incoming call is from a calling party whose telephone number and possibly their name is not available to the caller identification system.
It is another aspect of the present invention to provide an audibly distinct ring on a caller ID subscriber""s telephone to alert the subscriber that the incoming telephone call will be audibly announced, since the telephone number and possibly the name of the calling party is not available to the caller identification system.
Yet another aspect of the present invention is to visually display a special message on a caller ID subscriber""s visual display unit to alert the subscriber that the incoming telephone call will be audibly announced, since the telephone number and possibly the name of the calling party is not available to the caller identification system.
Still another aspect of the invention is to provide an opportunity for a calling party, whose telephone number and possibly their name is not available to the caller identification system and who is calling a caller ID subscriber, to unblock the calling party""s name and telephone number for the current call only without having to hang up and redial.
These aspects and additional advantages are realized in the present invention which operates within a telephone system network within a Local Calling Area (LCA) and the local central offices within the LCA. The telephone system network utilizes switches operating within a Signaling System 7 protocol network that supports Advanced Intelligent Network (AIN) capabilities. The central offices servicing the caller ID subscribers are digital electronic switching systems of a suitable type, such as a 5ESS from Lucent, or a DMS100 from Nortel, or an analog electronic switching system of a suitable type, such as a 1AESS from Lucent. The central offices must also be equipped with AIN Terminating Attempt Triggers (TAT), which are equipped against the caller ID subscriber""s line in the serving central office.
The serving central offices identify incoming telephone calls from various call sources, and determine whether or not the incoming call""s directory number is available. The serving central offices also identify the directory number that the call is directed to. If a termination attempt trigger is equipped against the directory number that the call is directed to, the serving central office suspends connecting the call and sends a query to a database within a services control point. The services control point provides call processing instructions for calls to a caller ID subscriber who has a call processing record equipped with the caller ID service. An intelligent peripheral provides audio announcements, collects digit input from a telephone keypad, and connects the calling party to the caller ID subscriber when directed to do so by the services control point. The intelligent peripheral is connected to the serving central office through primary rate Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) trunks. The intelligent peripheral is accessed through direct inward dial telephone numbers that are route indexed to the intelligent peripheral.
The caller identification system of the present invention, in addition to allowing caller ID subscribers to receive calls where the telephone number and possibly the name of a calling party are available to the caller identification system, provides unblocking or audible identification on telephone calls from calling parties having blocked or unknown numbers. Calling parties from blocked or unknown numbers will hear an announcement, such as xe2x80x9cThe number you are calling does not accept unidentified calls.xe2x80x9d This announcement may be followed by other announcements based on whether the unidentified call is blocked or unknown. A blocked call, also referred to as a private call, is a call from a number that is available to the telephone switching system but has been marked private at the request of the calling party, and thus cannot be delivered to the caller ID subscriber. An unknown call is a call from a number that is not available to the telephone switching system for some other reason. For example, some long distance carriers may not pass along the ten digits of the calling party""s telephone number. In addition, some operator calls or collect calls may also not pass along the calling party""s ten digit telephone number. Also, auto dialers used by telemarketing companies often prevent the ten digits of the calling number from being passed along.
In the present invention, calling parties from blocked numbers are given the option of unblocking their name and telephone number for the current call, or to record their name for delivery to the caller ID subscriber. Calling parties from unknown numbers are given the option of recording their name for audible identification.
If the calling party presses a specified digit on the telephone keypad, such as a zero (0) during or immediately after the announcement(s), the signal sent from the telephone keypad causes the caller identification system to replay the announcement(s). If the blocked or private calling party presses another specified digit on the telephone keypad, such as a two (2), or waits, or if the unknown calling party presses another specified digit, such as a one (1), or waits, the signal sent causes the caller identification system to play announcements instructing the calling party to say the calling party""s name after the tone, and then press another specified digit, such as the pound (#) key. If the calling party records their name, the caller identification system will place the calling party on hold and attempt to contact the caller ID subscriber by outdialing the caller ID subscriber""s directory number. This triggers a distinctive ring in the caller ID subscriber""s telephone that is different from the normal ring for incoming calls. If the caller ID subscriber""s telephone is answered, the caller identification system then attempts to deliver the audible identification.
If the blocked or private calling party presses another specified digit on the telephone keypad, such as a one (1), the caller identification system will unblock the calling party""s name and telephone number for the current call only, and the call will be forwarded to the caller ID subscriber""s telephone for normal call processing. If any other digit is pressed, the calling party will be informed that the digit that was pressed is not an option and to please try again. The calling party is given three attempts to enter a correct digit. After three incorrect attempts, the caller identification system will play a termination announcement. If the caller ID subscriber has a voice messaging service, the calling party will be forwarded to that voice messaging service.
If the calling party elects not to use the record option for unknown or blocked numbers, or the unblock option for blocked or private numbers, the caller identification system will play a termination announcement and terminate the telephone call. If the caller ID subscriber has a voice messaging service, the caller identification system will play a termination announcement indicating that the call will be sent to a voice messaging service, and will forward the calling party to the caller ID subscriber""s voice messaging service.
If the calling party""s name has been recorded, the caller identification system places the calling party on hold and outdials to the caller ID subscriber""s directory number. The caller ID subscriber""s telephone rings with a distinctive ring to identify that the call is from the caller identification system, and the caller ID subscriber""s visual display unit will display a special message, and special symbols, such as xe2x80x9c000-000-0000xe2x80x9d, or no calling number information, depending upon the individual caller ID subscriber""s visual display unit.
If the caller ID subscriber does not have a voice messaging service and the call is answered, the caller identification system plays an announcement indicating that the call is from an unidentified calling party, and requests that the caller ID subscriber press a specified digit, or any digit within a specified range of digits, on the telephone keypad. If the call is answered but the caller ID subscriber does not press any key, or a specified digit or any digit within a specified range of digits on the telephone keypad is pressed, the caller identification system will inform the calling party that there was no response, and that the calling party will be connected to the telephone answering device. The calling party will then be connected to the subscriber""s line to allow the calling party to leave a message on the telephone answering device.
If the caller ID subscriber presses a specified digit on the telephone keypad, such as the one (1) key, the caller identification system plays an announcement indicating that the caller identification system is calling, such as xe2x80x9cYou have a call from . . . xe2x80x9d and then plays the recorded name. The caller ID subscriber is then given the choice of accepting the call by pressing a specified digit on the telephone keypad, such as the one (1) key, or pressing another specified digit on the telephone keypad, such as the two (2) key, to indicate that the caller ID subscriber is not available. If the caller ID subscriber accepts the call, the calling party will be connected with the caller ID subscriber. If the caller ID subscriber rejects the call, the calling party will be informed that the caller ID subscriber could not be reached and the call will be terminated.
If the caller ID subscriber has a voice messaging service, the caller identification system skips the initial press the one (1) key announcement and plays an announcement indicating that the caller identification system is calling, such as xe2x80x9cYou have a call from . . . xe2x80x9d and then plays the recorded name. The caller ID subscriber is then given the choice of accepting the call by pressing a specified digit on the telephone keypad, such as the one (1) key, or pressing another specified digit on the telephone keypad, such as the two (2) key, to indicate that the caller ID subscriber is not available. If the caller ID subscriber accepts the call, the calling party will be connected with the caller ID subscriber. If the caller ID subscriber rejects the call, the calling party will be informed that the subscriber could not be reached and that the calling party will be sent to the caller ID subscriber""s voice messaging service. The calling party is then forwarded to the caller ID subscriber""s voice messaging service to leave a message.
The caller identification system does not distinctively ring on a line equipped for custom ringing, but rings with the normal ring cadence for the directory number called. Audibly identified calls from the caller ID service on a line with custom ringing will display the special message and the special symbols, such as xe2x80x9c000-000-0000xe2x80x9d, or no calling number information, depending on the individual caller ID subscriber""s visual display unit.
The caller ID subscriber has the ability to control or modify the subscriber""s caller ID service by dialing a number and gaining access to a voice response system and interact with voice prompt menus. The caller ID subscriber can utilize these menus to turn caller ID service on or off, and can also establish, or change, a four digit privileged caller code. The caller ID subscriber can give the privileged caller code to friends, family members, or to any other individuals he/she chooses. If one of these individuals calls the caller ID subscriber from a private or unknown number, the caller will hear the announcements indicating that the party they are calling does not accept unidentified calls. The caller can enter the privileged caller code at any time during the interruptible announcements. If a privileged caller code is entered, the caller identification system verifies that the privileged caller code is correct for this caller ID subscriber. If it is correct, the caller identification system will route the caller directly to the caller ID subscriber""s line, bypassing the rest of the unidentified call processing procedure. The caller ID subscriber""s phone will ring with a distinctive ring, and the caller ID subscriber""s visual display unit will display a message, such as xe2x80x9cPrivileged Call,xe2x80x9d and distinguishable symbols for the calling number, such as xe2x80x9c000-000-0000.xe2x80x9d